State and local final questions

Local governments are primarily responsible for _______.

law enforcement and fire protection

for states and localities, ______ is the biggest factor in limiting independent policy action.

money

Which of these best describes the primary purpose of state and local governments?

they provide services to their respective populations

which of these characteristics is a shared feature of all fifty states?

they all have a basic division of powers among their branches of government

which system of government was established under the first governing document of the united states?

confederal

Which 1786 event played an important role in the federalists mission to create a more powerful national government?

shay's rebellion

Which amendments to the constitution prohibits any state from depriving individuals of the rights and privileges of citizenship and require states to provide due process and equal protection guarantees to all citizens?

14th amendment

Octavia is the governor of a state seeking to reject a federal law and invalidate the law within her state's border. In order to do this, she should engage in a process of _______.

nullification

The united states adopted a cooperative federalist model as a result of what process in the 1930s?

the new deal

within their own borders, states can be classified as which type of system?

unitary

What factor or characteristic distinguishes an implied power from an enumerated power in the U.S. constitution?

whether the power is mentioned specifically in the document

The national and state governments' powers to tax, borrow, and spend are examples of which type of power?

concurrent

In its seminal decision in McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), the U.S. Supreme Court held that ________.

the necessary and proper clause justified Congress in creating a national bank

In 2012, the state of Washington became the first state to legalize marijuana. Not long after, other states started to follow suit. This example illustrates federalism's advantage in ______.

allowing for experimentation at the state level

Which power is granted to the states by the 10th amendment of the U.S. Constitution?

plenary power

Which term is used to describe bills that allow the transfer of money to the executive branch?

appropriations

Bicameral legislatures were instituted through the first _________.

state constitutions

When the legislature sends a constitutional amendment to the electorate for approval, it is referred to as ________.

ratification

In a dispute between state and county governments, the status of authority comes up. Which of the following best describes a county government's authority?

subordinate arm of the state

If citizens wanted to change their state constitution via a ballot measure, which of these would be the last step in the process before the measure makes it onto the ballot?

signatures are verfified

Sonya is a judge who sees her role on the court as one of evaluating the actions of the legislative and executive branches of government and invalidating them if they are unconstitutional. Which term describes this power of the court?

judicial review

Which of the following is an example of the U.S. Supreme Court using its power of judicial review?

ruling state level same sex marriage bans as unconstitutonal

Due to the legacy of the Reconstruction period, states created weak governorships which _______ of the governor's office.

limited executive powers

Given that the provision is not included in the U.S. Constitution, perhaps the most drastic difference between state constitutions is found in _________.

their embrace of direct democracy

Which term is used to describe the proportion of money a community pays in taxes?

tax effort

Which source of money for state and local governments is typically issued in bonds?

debt

Which of these is often used to restrain state and local budgets?

ballor initiatives

Which of these statements best illustrates why economists prefer sales taxes over any other tax?

They don't distort consumer behavior

The Quill Corp v. North dakota (1992) and South Dakota v. Wayfair (2018) Supreme Court decisions shared what commonality?

They both focused on sales tax imposition on online purchases.

Which types of taxes are used by states to finance public education?

property

Which of the following statements pertaining to the budgeting process is true?

Most states are required to balance their budgets

Which of these is considered the largest functional spending category of subnational governments?

education

Which of these best illustrates how unfunded mandates work?

The federal government mandates a state clean up the environment, but does not provide the funds to pay for the cleanup.

If an individual were to criticize sales taxes, they would most likely argue that they are a problem because they are _____ taxes.

regressive

Which of these terms describes unwanted amendments that can derail legislation?

riders

A caucus is best describes as a group of _________.

members belonging to the majority party

The most prestigious state legislative committees address which type of issues?

budget

A legislator who votes according to their own conscience is referred to as a

trustee.

States with _______ tend to have professionalized legislatures.

large populations

State legislators representative functions and their constituent service functions are alike in that both functions _________.

require the legislators to engage with the people they represent

Which statement accurately describes the relationship between casework and constituent services in the context of state legislatures in the United States?

Casework and constituent services are two names for the same tasks.

Nebraska's state legislature is unique in the United States in that it _________.

contains only one house

When states bring in agencies to draw district boundary maps, these agencies tent to focus on which factor in doing so?

equal popluation

Which of the following is a characteristic of a citizen legislature?

They employ smaller staffs

Which of these offices is responsible for regulating elections in most states?

secretary of state

Which of these individuals is the only statewide official elected in every state?

governor

Why do modern governors regularly make overseas trips?

to encourage foreign investment in their states

Which of thesis roles do the governors play when they seek more federal money for their states?

lobbyist

In the context of American state governors powers, what factor differentiates formal powers from informal powers?

whether they are listed in state constitutions or not

A governor's power to ______ helps ensure that agencies remain focused on the governor's priorities.

prepare state budgets

Having a bigger bully pulpit illustrates which informal gubernatorial power?

popular support

Which of these actions will most likely increase a governor's public support?

making a TV show appearance

Gubernatorial power is most commonly threatened by which of these outcomes?

term limits

The governor of Maryland names members of the Rural Legacy Advisory Committee, who, once confirmed by the Maryland Senate, serve 3 year terms to advise the governor on land preservation in the Old Line State. This scenario typifies which formal power of state governors in the United States?

appointment

Even though most prosecutors are essentially local officials, their authority to prosecute is authorized by _______.

the state government

A number of states have created a _______ which is a fast paced court that puts limitations on the amount of time lawyers have to handle pretrial motions and file briefs.

rocket docket

Documentary and physical evidence are typically first introduced in which court?

trial court

Of the following legal cases, which one is a civil case?

a trial in which Lee Stanley is being sued by his neighbor for destroying their common fence

In a trial court setting, a settlement and a plea bargain are alike in that both _______.

prevent the case from going to trial

state supreme courts differ from other state appellate courts in that only state supreme courts ________.

have discretion over the cases they hear

The mission of the trial court is to _______.

examine the facts to resolve the dispute

Which of the following best illustrates the concept of discretionary jurisdiction?

The courts have the right to pick and choose which cases they hear.

Proponents of judicial elections are likely to make which of the following arguments?

Elections are compatible with democratic traditions

Threats of ______ have become a common tactic when trying to persuade judges in their rulings.

impeachment

Geographical and administrative subdivisions of states are referred to as ________.

counties

Which of these is the most common type of municipal government?

mayor council system

Which of these documents lists the powers and the purposes of local government?

charters

Which of these statements best illustrates the differences between cities and counties?

Cities were created from the bottom up, whereas counties were created from the top down.

Which of these forms of municipal government is considered the most democratic?

town meeting

Which of these is a characteristic of the special district form of government?

it is a single purpose government

How does the U.S. constitution's tenth amendment affect local governments?

it mandates states set what local governments can and cannot do.

Which of these statements pertaining to Dillion's rule is true?

It argues that in a power struggle, the state government will win against the local government.

In the context of home rule charters, which factor distinguishes a special act charter from a general act charter?

the number of municipalities to which the charter applies

If an individual wanted to run for a legislative position within a municipality, what government position should they run for?

city council

The databases of registered voters maintained by the states are referred to as voter _______.

rolls

Which entity or entities are responsible for setting election laws and carry out elections in the United States?

the states

Election ballots are counted at which level of government?

county

Which of the following is a major concern of legislators, according to the text?

being punished politically

Which of these statement best illustrates the paradox of American elections?

Americans like elections, but voter turnout rates are the lowest amongst democracies of the world.

Which factor distinguishes a plurality election from a majority election?

the threshold a candidate must reach to win

Which of these primary election types are characterized as a threat to both minor party and independent candidates?

top two primary

Which types of elections are most likely to be nonpartisan in the United States?

local

If a citizen wanted to vote in a state that implemented a voter identification law, they could use which type of identification to register?

driver's license

Imagine that you are a citizen of the United States in 1800. You live along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and you are looking to vote in an upcoming election. What requirement should you make sure you meet before you can go vote?

own property

Which of these education related institutions was intended to end the spoils system in public education during the Progressive Era?

school boards

Which of these entities is responsible for carrying out the policies that are set by school boards?

school districts

Public education is funded mostly by which levels of government?

local and state

The "nation's report card" on education performance in the U.S. is otherwise known as the _______.

National Assessment of Educational Progress

Which of these was a standards based revision of the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act?

No Child Left Behind Act

Which of these is considered the largest and most controversial source of public school revenue?

local property taxes

In Serrano v. Priest (1971), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states legislatures must ________.

find ways to make school funding more equitable

Which of these best illustrates the arguments made against using standardized test scores to measure school performance?

They are biased against certain ethnic or cultural groups.

Which of these best illustrates the reason why the No Child Left Behind Act was considered controversial?

It was found to be too expensive to implement and difficult to administer

Which of these statements best illustrates the reasons why there is a shortage of teachers in some states?

Fewer people are choosing primary and secondary education as a career

A report recently noted that nearly 43 percent of released prisoners in the state of Illinois wind up back in prison within 3 years. As such, Illinois's _______ rate is about 43 percent.

recidivism

Which states is famous for its "tough on crime" culture?

Texas

The 2020 murder of _______ by Minneapolis police officers brought about nationwide protests and reinvigorated the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.

George Floyd

Recent criminal reform movements in Seattle and Eugene, Oregon are similar in that both emphasize which factors in law enforcement?

mental health and drug addiction

Which of these punishments would be considered the least severe in comparison with the others?

probation

Why were Black prisoners in the Pre Civil Way exceptionally rare?

Enslaved Black people were subject to extrajudicial punishments, not imprisonment.